Various on-line collaboration systems are used to facilitate the exchange of business transaction documents via secure Internet websites. These systems are particularly useful in situations in which multiple versions of a document are exchanged among multiple users. Ideally the versions of different documents are presented in an organized manner allowing retrieval of both current and prior versions of each of the documents involved.
In many cases these documents are exchanged in an environment involving multiple “adverse” parties on different sides of a transaction. For example, document drafts may be exchanged between a buyer and seller of a business (and their attorneys and advisers). In the situations it is desirable that the document repository be a neutral service not associated with either of the transaction parties.
But despite the efficient use of Internet-based document exchange systems, the final step in most significant transactions is still the physical signing of the documents. In the case of significant transactions, dozens of documents, many of which may be 50 or more pages in length, must be signed at the “closing.” In some cases there is not a single closing and instead each party prints the “final” document and signature pages are exchanged. While an on-line document exchange system allows the parties to more efficiently reach the point of agreement upon a “final” version that will be signed by the parties, there remains some uncertainty as to whether the printed document being signed at the closing (or separately printed and signed by each of the parties) is the “final” document expected by the parties. Unfortunately, the only way to accurately verify the appropriateness of the printed document presented for signature is to physically compare that document with a printed version of the intended “final” version. This process is time-consuming and prone to error, particularly in complex transactions with multiple lengthy documents.